International staffs of non-governmental organizations "Save the Children" get in to a taxi upon arriving in domestic airport in Yangon from Sittwe, Thursday, Mar 27, 2014 following Buddhist-led mobs tore through streets hurling stones at the offices and residences of international aid workers in Myanmar's western Rakhine state on Thursday, prompting the evacuation of staff members. Tensions in Rakhine have been soaring ahead of a national census ? the first in 30 years ? with many Buddhist ethnic Rakhine saying members of the religious minority should not be allowed to identify themselves as Rohingya on the survey. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe)

Buddhist-led mobs tore through streets hurling stones at the offices and residences of international aid workers in Burma's western Rakhine state Thursday, prompting the evacuation of almost all non-essential staff, residents and officials said.

Some were flown out, others placed under protection at a police guest house.

There were no immediate indications anyone was hurt in the violence, which started in the state capital, Sittwe, late Wednesday and picked up again early Thursday, with angry crowds swelling in size from several hundred to more than 1,000.

At least one building was looted and three cars damaged, aid workers said on condition of anonymity because they feared retaliation.

Burma, a predominantly Buddhist nation of 60 million also known as Myanmar, emerged from a half-century of military rule in 2011. But newfound freedoms of expression that accompanied its transition to democracy have given voice to religious hatred, causing violence that has left up to 280 people dead and sent another 140,000 fleeing their homes.

Most of the victims have been members of the long-persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority.

Aid groups that have been providing care for those now living in crowded camps - where they have little access to food, education or health care - have for months faced threats and intimidation by Buddhist Rakhine, hampering their ability to work.

Last month, the government stopped the Nobel Peace Prize-winning aid group Doctors Without Borders from working in the state altogether, in part because it had hired Rohingya.

Tensions in Rakhine have reached fever pitch ahead of next month's national census - the first in 30 years. Many Buddhists say members of the religious minority should not be allowed to identify themselves as Rohingya over fears it could legitimize their existence in the country.

Though many of their families arrived generations ago, they have been denied citizenship by law.